Ab ke Baari Atal Bihari
Poor Mr. Vajpayee is torn between retiring in peace and fighting to confirm his stranglehold on the party. But it seems that ultimately he has made his choice in surprisingly chaste Marathi “Ata Baari Nako. Pushkal Zala” (I do not want another chance [at power]. I have had enough). I am not sure if he was auditioning for the part in a Marathi movie that Kamal Hassan is interested in or just seeking another language to vent his frustration.
I genuinely felt sad at the manner in which he has made his political exit. After being an able parliamentarian and vociferous orator, right from the Nehruvian days, he deserved the prime minister’s post more than anybody. The fact that most of the youth in today’s times considered him to be a role model, even in the days of youth-infused politics goes far to say that when values and model behavior is considered, age is no factor.
He was best described by his opponents to be the proverbial lotus among the swamps of his party. The concluding speech at the fag end of his 13-day old government in late-90s is still considered a masterpiece among parliamentary debates. The way he concluded his speech by saying Hum Sankhya Bal Ke Aage Sarr Jhukate Hai was powerful enough to name a Hindi movie if it didn’t reflect despair and outrage over the contemporary political scenario.
He may have been called a man without a spine and too weak to control the hardliners in BJP, but he was strong enough to conduct India’s second round of nuclear tests against the expected outrage of the superpowers. He responded in typical bully-state manner by amassing troops along the Pakistan border in the aftermath of December 13th but at the same time, showed great diplomatic discipline by exercising restraint. Not even his fiercest rivals could accuse him of lowly moral or ethical standards. I consider him an ideal example of maintaining your dignity and standing upright in days of failing hope and being a shining example of long-term growth. Spurious elements in his party may have veered a bit too right and cost him another shot at the highest post of the land.
He was a classic victim of coalition politics and sadly had to spend major part of his time in pandering to the inane wishes of the like of Jayalalitha and Mamta Banerjee. History may remember him as a failed prime minister but cannot deny him a place in its hallowed halls either. It is surprising to see how a political defeat can render a man helpless overnight and be labeled, even within his party as a non-achiever. His political demise may have been abrupt and not ideal enough for a man of his stature but then such is the realm of Indian politics.
